| Mega-Gem | |
|---|---|
.JPG) | |
 | |
| Artist | John Francis Torreano |
| Year | 1989 (1989) |
| Type | Aluminum |
| Dimensions | 220 cm × 340 cm × 220 cm (86 in × 132 in × 86 in) |
| Location | Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis,Indianapolis, Indiana,United States |
| Coordinates | 39°46′22″N86°10′27″W / 39.7729°N 86.1742°W /39.7729; -86.1742 |
| Owner | Indianapolis Museum of Art |
Mega-Gem is anoutdoor sculpture by American artistJohn Francis Torreano (born 1941). It is located on theIndiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) campus, which is near downtownIndianapolis,Indiana, and is owned by theIndianapolis Museum of Art. The oversized sculpture, made ofaluminum, is shaped like a round-cut diamond resting on one its facets and studded with 36 smaller, colored-metal rosettes.
Mega-Gem is an oversized,metallic, diamond-shaped sculpture that is tilted at an angle and composed with eighteen facets (or plates). Randomly scattered on each plate are from one to three metalrosette gems of varying colors. There are a total of 36 rosettes (six blue, six green, two red-orange, six red, eight gold, five silver and three black), all of which are made ofanodized or painted cast aluminum. The main body ofMega-Gem is gray Heliarch weldedaluminum plate.[1] The sculpture measures 7'2" × 11' × 7'2"[1] and sits on a concrete base that measures 2" × 11'. It weighs approximately 2,000 lb (910 kg).[1]
Mega-Gem was fabricated in 1989 with the resources ofCincinnati art dealer Carl Solway.[2] It was presented at the Chicago International Art Exposition, where it was located on theNavy Pier in Chicago, Illinois. The presentation ofMega-Gem was promoted through posters and buttons proclaiming the sculpture to be the largestdiamond in the world, weighing over 360 millioncarats.Mega-Gem was considered by Torreano to be one of a series of "oxy-gem" sculptures, playing on theoxymoron of combining precious gems with materials of lesser value, such as a "plywood gem", "gold gem", andMega-Gem as "aluminum gem".[3]Mega-Gem is one of Torreano's oversized and exaggerated jewel sculptures.[4]
In 1989Mega-Gem was presented at the Chicago International Art Exposition where it was displayed on Navy Pier alongLake Michigan inChicago, Illinois, until 1994.
In October 1994Mega-Gem was loaned to the Indianapolis Museum of Art for two years. It arrived on October 10, 1994, and was put on display in the southwest corner of Krannert Plaza, which is a section of the IMA's grounds and gardens located on the west side of the property overlooking theWhite River. In 1997, after the loan period had expired, theContemporary Art Society raised funds forMega-Gem to be acquired by the IMA. It remained on view in Krannert Plaza until 2001, when it was relocated to the southeast corner of the IMA property near the intersection of 38th Street and Michigan Road.[5]
In late January 2009Mega-Gem was relocated to the IUPUI campus to make way for the creation of the IMA'sVirginia B. Fairbanks Art & Nature Park, which opened in June 2010.[6]Mega-Gem was one of four IMA sculptures that were loaned to IUPUI. The others wereEast Gate/West Gate by Sasson Soffer,Portrait of History by Shan Zou Zhou, andSpaces with Iron by Will Horwitt.[7] These four IMA pieces on the IUPUI campus are part of theIndianapolis Cultural Trail, which "connects neighborhoods, entertainment facilities and the city's five cultural districts" and includesIndiana Avenue,Massachusetts Avenue, Indianapolis,Fountain Square, Indianapolis, theWholesale District, Indianapolis, andWhite River State Park.[8] The Cultural Trail, completed in 2013 as a bike and pedestrian path, will connectBroad Ripple Village, Indianapolis to downtown Indianapolis via theMonon Trail.[9]
Mega-Gem is situated in the courtyard north of New York Street on the IUPUI campus, east of Lecture Hall and south of Joseph T. Taylor Hall (formerly University College), at 815 W. Michigan Street.[10]
Mega-Gem was loaned to theIndianapolis Museum of Art (IMA) by the Carl Solway Gallery from 1994 to 1996. In 1997 the IMA Contemporary Art Society (CAS)[11] undertook the effort to purchase the sculpture and acquire it for the IMA. CAS President Dee Garrett led the fund drive forMega-Gem and worked with the IMA to sell miniature gem sculptures created by Torreano in order to raise money. The CAS donatedMega-Gem to the IMA at a gala in 1997 with John Torreano in attendance.[12]
Mega-Gem was acquired by the IMA in 1997 with the accession number of 1997.6. It is credited as the Gift of Robert Shiffler, Contemporary Art Society Fund and Henry F. and Katherine D. DeBoest Memorial Fund.[1] The value ofMega-Gem is unknown; however, prices for Torreano's work have ranged from $4,000 for smaller paintings to $30,000 for larger pieces.[13][volume & issue needed]
The fading paint on the rosettes has been a cause for concern in the past. In 1996, in preparation forMega-Gem's acquisition into the Indianapolis Museum of Art collection, the rosettes were returned to the artist for repainting.[1]
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